Republicans Hold the Senate, but....

Townhall

National Review  "Republicans solidified their razor-thin Senate majority Tuesday night, knocking off several Democratic senators in traditionally red states.
"In Indiana, Republican Mike Braun beat Democratic incumbent Senator Joe Donnelly.
"Republican Kevin Cramer ousted one-term Democratic Senator Heidi Heitkamp.
"Two unexpectedly difficult races in deep-red states went to Republicans. In Tennessee, Representative Marsha Blackburn kept recently retired GOP senator Bob Corker’s seat for Republicans, beating out former Tennessee governor Phil Bredesen. Senator Ted Cruz also retained control of his Texas seat after a nail-biter race in which Democratic rising star Beto O’Rourke whipped up an unexpected level of enthusiasm.
"Historically, the party of the president loses seats in Congress after a presidential election, a dressing-down of the chief executive from voters. However, President Trump has gone to bat for Republican candidates this cycle, holding eleven campaign rallies in just the week leading up to Election Day.
"Democrats were projected to win control of the House and had gained twelve seats before West coast polls had closed. 
"Republicans were expected to retain their Senate majority and possibly expand it. "Ten Democratic incumbents ran in states Trump won in 2016.
"The GOP’s grasp of the Senate will allow Trump to easily appoint more federal judges. It also paves an easier path for another Supreme Court confirmation process should the president have an opportunity to nominate a third justice.
“ 'Anybody that was anticipating a blue wave tonight’s not going to get it. Maybe you get a ripple but I certainly don’t think that there’s a blue wave,” White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said."

No one should kid themselves: It’s a big night for Democrats. "No one should kid themselves. Republicans may have been more resilient in the Senate and in governor’s mansions than people expected, but it’s a big night for Democrats. Early exit polls show that polarization along the lines of sex is real, and a real problem for Republicans. Republicans have turned off women.
"Getting the power to investigate the Trump administration will be very useful for House Democrats. Given the number of early Trump campaign and administration officials that already have had to talk to law enforcement, I expect the Democrats will be able to turn up scandal.
"At first glance, it looks like Brett Kavanaugh did more for Republican electoral fortunes than all the Trump pre-election rallies. Vulnerable Democrats in the Senate almost all went down." . . .

Brown was seen as a left-winger. He ends his last term as a moderating influence on California’s politics. The Gavin Newsom era is likely going to be very different. He’ll be bidding to lead liberal America in a values fight with conservative America.

When Did the Democratic Party Become Socialist?

Rich Terrell

Leon Puissegur  "What is the Democratic Party? Or should we ask what was the Democratic Party? Either way, it is not what it used to be, and many indications seem to show that this party is neither for the people nor for the United States as we know it. It all boils down to, when the Democratic Party was first formed, what it did for people and how it felt about our young nation.

" 'Democratic" and "Democracy" come from the Greek roots demos (the people) and kratein (to rule). But today, it means something much different.

"The Democratic Party can trace its roots to Thomas Jefferson, as he founded what was originally the Republican Party; it was first known as the Democratic-Republican Party. The modern Democratic Party began during the War of 1812. The Democratic Party was anti-National Bank by the 1820's. From mid-1830's to the War Between the States, Democrats were America's major party. The Democratic Party supported slavery and protested the Jim Crow laws; the Democratic Party was against any black obtaining freedom. Yes, kind of hard to believe, but totally true. The Democratic Party supported slavery and Jim Crow—make sure that sinks in.
. . . 
"But just when did the Democratic Party begin its slide down the road toward the Socialist/Communist ideology? It really began around 1944, when the six-time Socialist Party candidate for President stated:

"The American people will never knowingly adopt socialism. But, under the name of 'liberalism,' they will adopt every fragment of the socialist program, until one day America will be a socialist nation, without knowing how it happened.... I no longer need to run as a Presidential Candidate for the Socialist Party. The Democratic Party has adopted our platform."  . . .

Leon Puissegur is a Disabled Vietnam Veteran with 3 children and 9 grandchildren. He has been married to the same wonderful lady for 43 years. He is an award winning author and has been writing opinion pieces over the years and in just the last few years has written 4 books and a large amount of articles on many sites. You can purchase his books at Amazon. Pick up his latest The Oil Man.

Trump Regrets His Tone During First Two Years as President

Legal Insurrection
“I would like to have a much softer tone. I feel to a certain extent I have no choice, but maybe I do.”

"On Monday, President Donald Trump told Scott Thuman of the Sinclair Broadcast Group that out of everything that has happened in his first two years in office, he regrets his tone. "From WJLA:

Trump said if there was anything he would try and redo it would be to soften his tone.

“I would like to have a much softer tone. I feel to a certain extent I have no choice, but maybe I do,” Trump said. He attributed his tone during his first two years in office to wanting to get things done on his agenda, adding that he could have been softer in his delivery.

The president also stated that he had doubts about using a softer tone because he might have been “swamped” by his opposition.

He said after the midterm election his tone is something he will be working on and he hopes there will be more harmony between Republicans and Democrats.

. . . 

It’s Over: Ted Cruz Defeats Beto O’Rourke, Texas Stays Red, Republicans Keep The Senate

RedState  "One of the most watched races in America, if not the most watched race was taking place in Texas. 

"Republican Senator Ted Cruz was defending his seat against the Democrat’s all-in candidate, Robert Francis “Beto” O’Rourke, and since the race started it was a nail-biter, with Republicans taking small solace in the fact that the polls consistently had Cruz ahead, but only by single digit numbers. 

"Politico is reporting that Cruz is projected to win Texas, defeating O’Rourke in a narrow victory. NBC News is reporting the same with 79 percent of the vote tallied, and Cruz was leading O’Rourke 51 percent to 48.4 percent. 

" 'This race was likely the most important race for Democrats in terms of momentum. Taking down what the Democrats have termed an “arch-conservative” would have signaled a chink in the Republican’s armor, and what’s more, look bad on President Donald Trump, proving that his endorsement doesn’t mean as much as Republicans would have hoped. 

"All that is now in the past now and Trump will likely get a boost himself for helping keep Texas red. Democrats have once again failed in a large bid, and find themselves with lighter pockets with nothing to show for it. 

"Texas hasn’t elected a Democrat for decades, and it looks like the pattern will keep, even despite the $70 million-plus that was given to O’Rourke on top of all the Hollywood attention. What’s more, Cruz keeping his seat heralds the Republicans keeping the Senate."

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez Wins, Becomes Youngest Woman Elected To House

Western Journal

Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez won her congressional race in New York City, becoming the youngest woman ever elected to the House of Representatives.
"The 29-year-old’s district includes portions of Queens and the Bronx.
"The Hill reported that Ocasio-Cortez’s election eclipsed the mark set by the previous youngest woman ever elected by one year.
"Republican Rep. Elise Stefanik from upstate New York took her seat in the House at 30 years of age in 2015.
"Stefanik easily won her re-election bid Tuesday night.
"Ocasio-Cortez, who identifies as a Democratic socialist, toppled Democratic Caucus Chairman Joseph Crowley in the June Democratic primary.
"According to The Hill, the Hispanic liberal activist “escalated a broader debate among Democrats about the direction of the party: Should Democrats, in the age of Trump, veer left and embrace the liberal populist message of Sanders? Or should they shift to the center in an effort to broaden the party’s appeal in heartland districts carried by Trump?”

"The Huffington Post reported Ocasio-Cortez worked as a bartender months before winning her primary, having never held any previous elected office.
"The congresswoman-elect has campaigned on Medicare for all, a federal jobs guarantee, abolishing Immigration and Customs Enforcement and “housing as a human right.”

Michigan reporter fired for overheard comments about GOP candidate

Rick Moran  . . . "What a shocker, huh?  A biased reporter wants the Democrat to win.  But should Battel have lost her job over the incident?

"The problem with biased media isn't that they are biased.  The problem is that they allow that bias to color their reporting.  How much of their biased reporting is consciously anti-Republican is hard to say.  But 85% of national reporters and editors supporting Hillary Clinton in 2016 is not surprising.  We've come to expect it.  It's when the media pretend to be objective or, at least even-handed in their coverage of politics that we have a problem – especially when many in the media have deluded themselves into actually believing that their slanted, anti-Republican, anti-conservative attitudes aren't manifesting in their coverage.

"Many actually believe they are non-partisan in their coverage.  I think there are many CNN reporters and editors who genuinely believe they are being as objective as possible.  That's why they're so outraged when Trump calls them out.  Certainly, there are several prominent CNN reporters who aren't even trying to hide their hate for Trump, but it's a sign of how corrupt and elitist our media have become that so many reject criticism of being biased as "attacking the press." 

"Should Battel have been fired?  The editor probably had no choice if she wanted to keep the fiction of objectivity intact.  But if bias were a firing offense nationwide, there would be few reporters left working."

Daily Caller comments:  . . . “ 'It shows you that some media will do anything to keep the status quo and career politicians in power,” campaign manager Tori Sachs said. “The liberal media can’t stand the idea of a job creator and combat veteran coming to Washington to shake up the system. This happened as we closed in within the margin of error.' ” . . .

CNN: The most (fill in the blank) name in news

CNN’s Existential War With Trump  "It may be unwise or monotonous for President Trump to harp on CNN as a purveyor of “fake news.” And the constant refrain “enemy of the people” should not be used of a media outlet, even one as prejudicial as CNN.

"Yet Trump’s obsessions with CNN are largely reactive, not preemptive.

"After just 100 days in office, before his own agendas could even be enacted, the liberal Shorenstein Center at Harvard reported that 93 percent of CNN’s coverage of the Trump Administration was already negative. Just one in every 13 CNN stories proved positive. That radically asymmetrical pattern (shared by NBC/MSNBC) had never been seen before in the history of comparable media analytics. No one at CNN sought to explain the imbalance, leaving the impression that the news organization had more or less joined the progressive opposition.

"In his serial pushbacks against CNN, if Trump has perhaps surpassed the invective of Barack Obama’s own periodic dismissals of Fox News, he has clearly not ordered his Justice Department to monitor the communications of any CNN reporter, in the manner of Eric Holder’s surveillance of Fox News journalist James Rosen." . . .

If You Thought CNN’s Chyrons Were Biased Against Trump Before…

"Via Twitchy: "If CNN was even trying to hide its bias before by rolling out that “Facts First” branding, the network has completely given up on being objective. As Twitchy reported, CNN’s “breaking news” chyrons aren’t breaking news at all — they’re mini editorials against President Trump. "That one was nothing compared to this one as Wolf Blitzer talked to Jim Acosta, who was at a Trump rally in Indiana:" . . . Keep reading…

The Washington Post here being CNN-ish; "You’re not allowed to use the word ‘beautiful’ anymore when you talk about women. It’s politically incorrect."

. . . "I'm seeing that at The Washington Post, under the headline "Introducing his daughter Ivanka at Cleveland rally, Trump vows never to call women 'beautiful.'" 
"Are they just pretending not to understand humor?
"I feel a little sorry for them, the Trump haters. They're willfully deafening themselves to humor and missing out on some hilarious stuff." . . . (Emphasis mine, TD)

Tell us again: why do women adore Hillary?

FOUL-MOUTHED Clinton Adviser Says Juanita Broaddrick ‘FULL Of S---’

"Former Hillary Clinton adviser Philippe Reines said in a new interview that Juanita Broaddrick is “full of s---,” declaring in no uncertain terms that he does not believe the woman who has repeatedly accused Bill Clinton of raping her.

"Reines, who is well-known for his unvarnished and sometimes-profane media interviews, was asked by host Jamie Weinstein on a National Review podcast whether he was reevaluating Clinton’s presidency in light of the current #MeToo movement.

" 'Some prominent Democrats have distanced themselves from the former president. Reines countered that Clinton was impeached and didn’t exactly “get off scot-free” -- before Weinstein reminded him that Broaddrick’s claims have not been investigated.

“ 'Juanita Broaddrick is full of s---,” Reines said.

"Weinstein shot back, “So you don’t think she’s telling the truth about that?”

“I do not think she’s telling the truth. More importantly, Ken Starr did not think that she was telling the truth,” Reines said. “For me, I assume Ken Starr pulled no punches.”

"Broaddrick did not immediately respond to Fox News’ request for comment.

"Broaddrick has long accused former President Clinton of raping her in 1978.

"She has reemerged during the #MeToo movement, calling for the FBI to launch an investigation into her longstanding allegations. She has also accused Democrats of a “double standard” for ignoring her case while demanding probes of other high-profile allegations, such as those against Supreme Court Justice Brett Kavanaugh.

"Independent Counsel Starr interviewed Broaddrick in 1999 as part of his investigation into allegations of sexual misconduct brought by Paula Jones. At first, Broaddrick signed a sworn affidavit denying a rape ever occurred. But when Starr approached her, he offered her immunity. She told BuzzFeed News in 2016 that was when she decided it “was time to tell the truth.' ” . . .

If Democrats Control the House

Legal Insurrection

William L. Gensert "Mad Maxine Waters*… let that roll around in your mouth a bit.  Can you taste it?  This is a woman who, were she not a duly elected Democratic Party congresswoman, couldn’t get a job requiring her to ask, “Would you like fries with that?”

Waters

"But not to worry.  She will only be the head of the Financial Services Committee in the House of Representatives.  Financially, she obviously has done well for herself with mansions and servants and other accoutrements of great wealth that the Democrats always seem to acquire while serving the public in their destitute districts.  What can anyone say?  Despite being rated one of the most dishonest politicians in Congress, it hasn’t hurt her yet. 

"We can look forward to her endlessly screaming, “Impeach Trump,” while calling for violence from the masses against any available Republican so that she can then blame the resulting violence on the President. 

"You can’t blame someone for violence unless you have violence and damn it, she’s worked hard on creating it for lo these many years (it’s only two, but it seems like so much longer because she’s so shrill).

"I have one suggestion.  Just as every Barack Obama speech must be watched with the sound off -- especially now that he can’t fill a high school gym -- to see the hatred on his face as he spends his time enunciating to the dwindling crowds his profound success and how all things good and great spring from his loins -- one must also watch in stunned silence every guttation-like drop of wisdom exuding from the pores of Mad Maxine Waters.  Then watch again with the volume turned up and you will realize that while she may be the most successful dishonest politician since Boss Tweed, she is also half a moron.  Or, to put it nicely, she may be the dumbest American politician of our time (perhaps that wasn’t so nice). 

"Yes, apparently for the Democrats, being stark raving mad and an inchoate parody of a moron qualifies Mad Maxine to head of the House Financial Services Committee.  What could go wrong?" . . .

*Mad Max: Worshipper of Louis Farrakhan

The Immaturity of Supporting Hillary Clinton Because She’s a Woman

Dennis Prager

More important than her sex is her long history of lying, pay-for-play politics, and mockery of women who accused her husband of assault or rape.

"It is hard to imagine a more immature or morally primitive stance than that of progressive women (and men) who argue how important is to support Hillary Clinton because, as your local college would put it, she identifies as a woman.

"One perfect example of such thinking was the recent statement made by former secretary of state Madeleine Albright at an event on behalf of Mrs. Clinton. Albright announced that “there is a special place in hell” for women who don’t support women, meaning, in this instance, for women who don’t vote for Hillary Clinton.

"Such immature thinking, it is important to note, is to be found only on the left. Racial solidarity, ethnic solidarity, class solidarity, and gender solidarity all matter greatly to the Left, not the Right. When Margaret Thatcher first ran for prime minister, she would, if she won, become the first female prime minister in British history. But British conservatives, including women who supported Thatcher, rarely mentioned her gender, let alone offered it as a reason to vote for her.

"Conservatives in the U.K. and in America vote their values, not for the gender or ethnicity of politicians." . . .

Pictured: women who do not support Hillary:

Barbra Streisand’s Propaganda Walls Tumble Down

"Her new protest album, Walls, is tone-deaf, self-absorbed, and out of touch."

National Review   Before Barbra Streisand got “woke” and fancied herself a political pundit-activist seeking redress for Hillary Clinton’s electoral defeat, she recorded a song called “Don’t Believe What You Read,” on her 1977 Streisand Superman album. Since then, the singer has shown tone-deaf, robotic obedience to what she reads in the mainstream #Resistance press. Her new, politically assertive single release, “Don’t Lie to Me,” is addressed to President Trump, but its reproachful tone reveals the cry of a Fake News junkie.

"It’s become boringly predictable to hear pop-music performers reveal their left-leaning politics. The New York Times, however, has praised Streisand’s new album Walls as “the rare instance of her political views entering her music.” This misstatement disregards the many times on past recordings when she sang out her social consciousness, rooted in a kind of theatrical humanism, expressing Love, Brotherhood, and Peace. She has milked such standards as “Somewhere,” “Children Will Listen,” and “One Hand, One Heart” for moralizing effect. 

"But this flagship single, for her full-length album Walls, primarily exhibits the Trump Derangement Syndrome that afflicts know-it-all showbiz types from Katy Perry to Bruce Springsteen to Pharrell, making them behave moronically. Walls finds Streisand in a privileged position, preaching from the high tower of self-involved, high-minded people who have had their worldview shaken by democracy itself — the will of an electorate that dares to differ from Streisand’s own high-flown preferences." . . .

Louis Farrakhan Visits Iran, calls for ‘Death to America’ and ‘Death to Israel’

Legal Insurrection

"Beloved by leaders of the Women’s March, and tolerated by key Democrats."

"Nation of Islam leader Louis Farrakhan visited Iran over the weekend where he did what he does best: spit on America and somehow connect Jews to everything.

Farrakhan with Maxine Waters

"During his speech at Tehran University, Farrakhan led chants of “Death to America” with the Iranians.

"Farrakhan and others went to tour Iran to help celebrate “the anniversary of the seizure of the US Embassy in Tehran during the 1979 revolution.” The visit also happened “just days before the Trump administration reimposes sanctions on Iran’s key oil sector.' ” . . .

. . . 
"Remember, Farrakhan was secretly embraced by Obama in 2005, but the photo was concealed until recently."